Movies - TV
Shooting Dressed To Kill On Location Was A Lesson For Nancy Allen
By JEREMY SMITH
In the 1970s, New York City was a hot mess, and the city seemed to be thriving and falling apart at the same time. If you watch films shot in New York at this time, like “Taxi Driver,” "Fame," and “Dressed to Kill,” the city’s energy is obvious, and in the case of "Dressed to Kill," Nancy Allen found that energy to be a welcome gift and a source of inspiration.
In a 2015 interview, Nancy Allen recounted working on-location for “Dressed to Kill” saying, “New York is a rather energetic city, so there's immediately that hum that's under everything you do…” Allen found this hum helpful for shooting the thriller, saying “The city already has that kind of energy: fast-paced, on the go… It really helped to energize the work…”
According to Allen, working on location was vitally important for the film because on a soundstage, “there’s just no energy there, and you’re constantly having to create and recreate some sort of energy to make something come to life.” Considering the film has a subway chase scene and a taxicab sex scene, the energy of the city helps bring these scenes to life.